Consumer prices in Poland rose by 2.6% in June 2024 compared to the same month the previous year, according to recent data from Statistics Poland. This increase was driven by a 6.1% rise in services and a 1.3% rise in goods. Notably, food prices contributed significantly to the inflation, increasing by 2.2%, while housing costs rose by 1.7% and prices in restaurants and hotels climbed by 7.7%.
On a month-on-month basis, consumer prices edged up by 0.1%. Food prices increased by 0.7%, and recreation and culture saw a rise of 1.4%. Prices in restaurants and hotels and health services each rose by 0.6%.
Commenting on the CPI data, ING Group noted that inflation in Poland is likely to rise in the coming months, primarily due to the partial withdrawal of the energy shield, which has helped keep energy prices low for households. They estimate that increases in gas and electricity bills could raise inflation by approximately 1.3 to 1.5 percentage points.
In late June, UKSW's World Economy Centre released its latest economic outlook for Poland, noting that the global economic challenges from 2018 to 2023 have led to uneven weakening of economies worldwide. Prof. Konrad Raczkowski highlighted that prolonged geopolitical tensions pose a significant challenge for businesses.
Regarding minimum wages, an increase is expected in 2023-2024, which will likely contribute to higher inflation while putting pressure on employers' costs. Real GDP growth is forecasted to slow to 0.9% in 2023, with a potential upward adjustment, followed by a rebound to between 2.1% and 2.4% in 2024.
Commenting on the findings of UKSW's report, Renata Juszkiewicz, president of the management board of the retail representative group POHiD and vice-president of EuroCommerce, stated that maintaining price stability has been a challenge in the Polish market. She noted that "high competitiveness within the sector has a restraining effect on price increases", resulting in food prices being lower than in neighbouring countries.
In addition, retailers have invested significant resources to avoid passing the full increase in purchase prices from producers to customers, Juszkiewicz, noted. "This strategy, alongside large purchase volumes and improved energy efficiency, has helped keep retail prices low. Since the pandemic and the onset of the war in Ukraine, retail chains have focused on pricing and promotional policies to support Polish families facing inflation's negative effects."
Elsewhere, Younger consumers in particular have been struggling with financial stability, a recent study found.
Nonetheless, a number of leading Polish retailers have announced investment plans, with Eurocash, Aldi Polska and market leader Biedronka among those confident of future growth.
Here's an overview of the top ten supermarket retail chains in Poland, according to their most recently-available full-year turnover. All data is supplied by Retail-Index.
***EXCLUSIVE OFFER*** Gain access to Retail-Index.com with a limited discount of 15% – use the code ESM15 in the remarks section on the Price & Order form.
1. Jerónimo Martins
Turnover: €17.93 billion (2022)
Jerónimo Martins, a Portuguese retail company, is the owner of Biedronka, the largest supermarket chain in Poland. The company also owns Hebe, a popular beauty and drugstore chain with 315 outlets.
Jerónimo Martins, which first entered the market in 1995, reported turnover of €17.93 billion in Poland in 2022, and hit its 3,500-store-mark in the country in November of last year.
2. Lidl & Kaufland
Turnover: €7.05 billion (2021)
Lidl and Kaufland are both German retail chains owned by the Schwarz Group, and generated €7.05 billion in turnover in Poland in 2021. Some 750 outlets operate under the Lidl banner in Poland, along with 237 Kaufland stores, bringing the group's total to 987.
In April, Kaufland announced plans to launch online marketplaces in Poland and Austria by late summer. This follows the successful rollout of the service in Slovakia and Czechia last year.
3. Eurocash
Turnover: €4.44 billion (2022)
Eurocash boasts 16,342 outlets in Poland under a myriad of banners including abc, Arhelan, Delikatesy Centrum, Euro Sklep, Eurocash, Frisco.pl, Groszek, Lewiatan, and Mila. In 2022, Eurocash generated €4.44 billion in turnover. The group opened its first stores in 1993.
In May, Paweł Surówka, president of Eurocash, indicated that the retailer plans to continue an efficiency improvement programme that involves the integration of wholesale companies and simplification of the organisational structure to offset the effect of the increase in the minimum wage throughout the year.
4. Żabka
Turnover: €3.05 billion (2021)
Żabka is a Polish convenience store chain with over 8,000 outlets, including Żabka, Żabka Nano, and Żappka stores. Żabka, which has been a key driver of autonomous store technology in the region, generated €3.05 billion in turnover in 2021.
Żabka plans to open more than 140 seasonal stores this summer.
5. Grupa Specjal
Turnover: €2.95 billion (2020)
Reporting a turnover of €2.95 billion in 2020, Grupa Specjal has some 9,880 outlets across Poland, under the banners Livio, Nasz Sklep, Premium Nasz Sklep, and Rabat Detal, its liquor store format.
6. Auchan
Turnover: €2.39 billion (2022)
Auchan is a French retail chain with operations in several countries, including Poland, where it has 231 outlets. The group operates stores under the Auchan Hypermarkets, Auchan Supermarkets, Easy Auchan, Moje Auchan, and Simply banners, and generated €2.39 billion in turnover in 2022.
In May, Auchan and Intermarché retail chains announced the establishment of a partnership, the aim of which is to create a long-term purchasing alliance on the Polish market.
7. Dino
Turnover: €2.82 billion (2021)
Generating €2.82 billion in turnover in 2021, Dino is a rapidly-growing supermarket chain that boasts some 1,815 outlets across Poland, up from 1,473 outlets the previous year. The group was founded in 1999.
Dino accelerated the pace of the its network rollout in 2021-2022, by opening a new store in Poland nearly every day.
8. Polska Grupa Supermarketów
Turnover: €1.87 billion (2021)
Polska Grupa Supermarketów operates a network of independent stores under three main banners - Delica, Minuta8, and Top Market.
Polska Grupa Supermarketów generated €1.87 billion in turnover in 2021, and operates some 634 stores as of last year. The group was founded in 2002.
9. Carrefour
Turnover: €1.83 billion (2021)
French retail giant Carrefour operates an estimated 900 stores in Poland, under banners including Carrefour Express, Globi, Carrefour Hypermarket, Carrefour Supermarket, and its recently-launched Supeco discount brand. Carrefour Poland generated €1.83 billion in turnover in 2021. It has had a presence in the country since 1997.
In May, Carrefour announced it has expanded its collaboration with Wolt to 59 stores across Poland, following a successful pilot. The initiative will allow shoppers to shop online and receive deliveries within 35 minutes.
10. Makro C&C (Metro)
Turnover: €1.45 billion (2022)
Wholesaler Makro C&C, owned by the Metro Group, operates two main banners, Makro and Odido. Makro operates 28 cash-and-carry outlets in Poland and generated €1.45 billion in turnover in 2022. Elsewhere, its network of franchised Odido stores encompasses an estimated 2,200 outlets.
Ranking just outside the top ten are a number of major operators, according to Retail-Index, including Emperia (Maxima), which has a turnover of €974 million (as of 2020) and operates two supermarket brands, Barbora and Stokrotka, across 807 stores. Netto has a turnover of €795 million (2020) and operates 647 stores. Selgros has a turnover of €899 million (2022) and operates 20 cash-and-carry stores. Chorten has an estimated turnover of €750 million (2020) and operates 2,325 stores. E.Leclerc has a turnover of €695 million (2020) and operates 43 hypermarkets. Polomarket has a turnover of €447 million (2021) and operates 280 stores. Aldi has a turnover of €411 million (2020) and operates 200 stores. Finally, Intermarché, operated by Grupa Muszkieterów, has a turnover of €405 million (2020) and operates 200 stores.
About Retail-Index
Retail-Index is a specialist supplier of management information on consumer retail markets, provided by Veraart Research Group in the Netherlands. Its mission is to supply managers with up-to-date key information on retail markets in Europe and support them in their international expansion.
The company dates back to 1964, when it started as a market research and marketing consulting company for consumer products and services. In 1989, it started publishing written reports on various retail sectors in Europe. As of 2005, it publishes its information on retailers through the online database and curated datasheet exports available on www.retail-index.com. A team of researchers manages the data to reflect upon current developments in the markets, collected from an extensive number of sources.
Read More: Top 10 Supermarket Retail Chains In France
Read More: Top 10 Supermarket Retail Chains In Germany
Read More: Top 10 Supermarket Retail Chains In Hungary
